The 2 for 4$ Drugstore Matte Lip Score

 It's admittedly been a while since I found anything truly exciting at the drugstore. I went through a long phase where I bought a lot of drugstore makeup and had a lot of 50/50 experiences. 

I think that's to be expected when you're shopping on a budget. In my experience the formulations, while great for some, have a much more narrow margin of success at a lower price point. Since then my beauty budget has increased a bit and so I'm more inclined to shell out for pricier products.

That said, every once in a while the drugstore gives up some really stellar surprises. 

Treat Yo Self

 So ok... I know we were supposed to talk about eye things but then over the weekend I did a thing.

I bought the Burberry Lip Velvet Lipstick in Oxblood because I can't help myself and because it's a beautiful, perfect, autumnal red. 

This is not my first foray into luxury lip products but it has been a long time since I was inspired to spend more than 30$ on lipstick. 

In fact I haven't bought much makeup the last few months anyway but when I found myself with a little extra cash to spare I went right for the lipstick display. 

Oxblood is the color they used in their most recent runway show and has since been dubbed the brand's "signature color".

It's Dark In Here

 I am a little late to the Kat Von D Liquid Lipstick Party. Now that I am here I am really here. This is a fantastic formula that wears well and is comfortable on the lips. After a full day of wear it leaves my lips a little dry but it's nothing that a good nights sleep in some Nuxe Reve de Miel won't fix.

The first shade I nabbed is Vampira and it is oh so seasonally appropriate but not for the faint of heart.

The New Favorite

The dreamy sun-soaked photo above unintentionally captured my feelings of warm fuzzy summer love that I have for the Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet Lip Colors.

No. Joke. This stuff is the things matte lip dreams are made of.

Even application, full color coverage, non drying and minimal transferring. UGH! I just love them.

I 100% will be getting more.

It's Cheaper At Home

 I went all the way to London, trolled the Charlotte Tilbury counter at Selfidges and then came home and snapped up one of the newest shades of the Matte Revolution lipstick. 

What? It was cheaper at home.

The Warm Weather Dark Lip Obsession

I'm not sure what it is this year. Normally I am SO on board with spring this-summer that but this year it seems the only shades that have graced my lips have been in the blood red and burgundy families.

Admittedly I'm having a bit of a baby goth girl moment as my Instagram can certainly attest to.

I think there is something about a more generous makeup application that feels fun for me right now.

I have mentioned a fair few of these babies before but as they have barely left my lips in nearly a month I think it's high time they got another shout out.

Impulse Purchasing 101

If there was going to be a blog post on how not to shop responsibly this would be a good place to start. 

Do you know when you see a product and you go...eh, it's ok, and then you look at the name and everything changes. 

Well when I saw the name on one of Marc Jacobs Beauty's newest Le Marc Lip Creme's I knew I had to have it. Even if it is a member of the color family that I admit I almost never wear. 

The "Ready for Spring" Wishlist

The change of season means it is definitely wish list time!

Gotta love a wish list. 

On top of that the last two days have been sunny and 40 degrees here in NYC. You would think we'd all lost our minds. All of a sudden everyone is like WooHoo 40 degrees, it's summer! Let's wear shorts!

No joke. 

While I'm not quite there yet the few extra hours of sunshine certainly wants to make me add some springtime sass to my beauty wardrobe. 

These are the things on the list.

The New Nudes

There is always something so welcoming about discovering a new everyday shade that sings on your skin. One of those colors you can just reach for without thinking about or having to worry if it matches the rest of your makeup. 

I'm not sure what it is but I don't seek out colors like this too often. It may be because I am more inclined toward a bold lip and because I don't always give myself the time needed to do my eyes "properly" in the morning. (As I sit here makeup free at my desk.)

At any rate, this past weekend I plunked down for two new nudes that came highly recommended from two very reliable sources and I could not be happier with them.

The Spring Series| Lips

Despite what seems to be another late winter "polar vortex" I am so ready to start breaking out some of my favorite spring shades. 

I don't like to complain, because I do genuinely enjoy the winter months but, I'm at my wits end at this point. It's cold and grey and it snows just enough so that you can't stay home but your journey into work is a nightmare so yes, I'm done with winter. 

So continued from last week I'm going to give you the rundown of all the lippies I'm busting out to get me through the last of the coldest days. 

Most Worn| MAC Lipstick

 

I love a good MAC Lipstick. Walking up to the counter and seeing the rows of rainbow shades spread out in front of me adds a superficial little pickup to my heartbeat.

Especially if you are new to the land of MAC or lipstick (or both) it's a great place to get your feet wet, get out of your comfort zone and try something different. 

Over the years I have come across many a MAC lippie some I've loved and some not so much but, today I've narrowed it down to the six most worn shades in my lineup this way, if you are planning a visit, maybe you'll have a place to start in mind.

The Repurchases| Nuxe Reve De Miel

It has been quite some time since I've featured a repurchased item on the blog. 

Probably because I'm a little slutty when it comes to my products and because when you do find yourself finishing things you realize that it actually takes a long time to do. 

The Nuxe Reve De Miel Ultra Nourishing Lip Balm is a prime example of this. The pot that I just finished is the one I started nearly 18 months ago. 

Balk all you want at a 19$ lip treatment but I bet you dollars to donuts you've spent twice that much on cherry Chapstick in the last year and a half. 

Capsule Wardrobe| Lipstick High and Low

I've done one capsule posts before (here and here), essentially about the basic items you should have in your collection to create the most diverse looks with the fewest products. 

I did not show the same restraint here...but, I am offering a high end and a more budget friendly lineup for you guys to choose from. This way you can fill the gaps in your collection from either lineup or mix and match as you see fit.

The formula here was simple. I picked one nude, mauve, coral, berry and, red shade from each price point. Some of the shades, the nudes in particular, are going to work better for those of you with a warmer skin tone (like mine) but the more saturated colors should be fair game for everyone. 

I omitted pinks because, as I have mentioned recently, the variation in that particular color category is a little nerve wracking for me.

The Beauty Purge 2015|#3 The Thing About Pink

As I wade through my acrylic drawers full of excess makeup (mainly lip products) I've suddenly noticed something.

I own A LOT of pink lipstick.

Do you know what I almost never wear?

Pink lipstick.

The One I Broke My "No Buy" For

 So I decided that to kick off the new year I would reign in my beauty spending until after I did my beauty inventory (coming later this month) and got rid of some of the clutter taking up space in my Muji storage. 

I can tell you now in terms of what's lacking (HA!) in my collection lip products DO NOT qualify. 

Then this past Wednesday my apartment flooded. This is not the first time it's happened but I had thought the issue was behind me. Sadly it is not and I still have some work to do with my landlord (who is handling things wonderfully might I add) to get it squared away. 

This past Wednesday was also the launch of Bite Beauty's new Lip Lab Limited Release Creme Deluxe series for 2015. 12 Limited run shades released the first Wednesday of every month all year long.

What can I say? I'd had a rough morning and I'm weak.

Ed Note: MAC Ruby Woo

Do you know how hard it is to get your hands on the world's most recommended red lip the week after the biggest red lip holiday of the year?

Damn near impossible.

After two MAC stores and two more counters it took one very friendly blue contact wearing, black lip sporting  MUA a trip up two floors at Macy's to find me, what felt like, the last Ruby Woo in New York City.

That was one purchase that went from New Years Eve impulse to New Years Eve mission very quickly.

There isn't much to say about this shade that hasn't already been said.

Lip Liner for Noobs

I have been resisting this. 

Something about the whole lip liner thing makes me feel very high maintenance and like I am spending too long doing one thing.

OCC had other plans for me though. 

I added this to my cart with the rest of my Black Friday Haul goodies thinking this was a more warm toned brown pencil but in reality it is the prefect my lips but better lip pencil. 

Go figure. 

So with OCC's Cosmetic Color Pencil in Trick in hand I sat down to see how I felt about this oft neglected step in my beauty routine.

Use Protection

It's COLD.

The worst part is that here in NYC it is only going to get worse before it gets better. 

Yeah there is something warm and fuzzy about the Holiday Season but come January 2nd we'll all be counting down the days until Spring.

As it is my skin is screaming for hydration and I am slowly including things into my morning routine to help defend against the painful winter winds. 

A Matte Red Lip at Every Price Point

Tis the season of the red lip!

Now I love me a red lip all year round. As such I have amassed and embarrassingly large assortment of red lip options at all pice points. 

The only caveat here is that ALL and I do mean ALL of my red lip colors are matte. 

I have said this before and I stand by it now but when you wear a bold lip, matte is your friend. 

No bleeding, minimal transferring and no strands of hair stuck to your lips.
What's not to love?

Vampy Lips-Mirror Selfie Style

 Along my makeup journey I have come to really love myself in a vampy lip.

I think it happened around the same time I "embraced the pale".

The high contrast of my paper white complexion against a deep bloody brown red or purple shade just adds to the long list of reasons why the colder months are my favorite.

So in classic Sunday bathroom selfie style I am going to walk you through four stellar choices if you're looking to add a more goth girl options to your lip color lineup.